


Together

by winters_girl17



Category: Sebastian Stan - Fandom
Genre: Cancer, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Surgery
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-07
Updated: 2019-01-31
Packaged: 2019-03-15 02:24:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 17,338
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13603584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/winters_girl17/pseuds/winters_girl17
Summary: I had the perfect life. A husband of four years that adored me and I him. We had two incredible kids, Jamie and Ari were our world. I was a pharmacy manager and pregnant with our third child. Sebastian and I were looking forward to the future. Then came the diagnosis that would turn our lives upside down and shatter our perfect life.





	1. Chapter 1

_Cancer_ , no one wants to hear that dreaded six letter word. Much less during pregnancy. Being five months pregnant with my third child and second son was supposed to be a joyous occasion however it was being overshadowed by the news of _breast cancer_. I was a pharmacist, which I loved, had a loving and devoted husband, a bright and bubbly four-year-old son, and a lively two-year-old ray of sunshine. Sebastian, Jamie, and Arabella were my whole world and I didn’t know how I was going to break the news to my family.

                It all started when I noticed much more tenderness and swelling in my breasts. Being thirty-six years old with a family history of the cancer, I had been getting mammograms since I turned thirty. It seemed things spiraled from there. Fatigue settled in and trips with my husband were put on hold. Some days, it took everything I had in me to be able to get out of bed to take care of my kids and go to work. Which is what lead to me sitting in _another_ doctor’s office while my husband was up in the air coming home after four days in Los Angeles.

                “Mrs. Stan, there are a number of things we can do.” The blonde said looking at me. “The important thing is that we caught this in time. There are chemo drugs that we can give you while your pregnant and after delivery we can try radiation or surgery.” She continued.

                I just nodded unable to say anything. “I’ll work with your OB and we’ll need to deliver the baby as soon as it is safe to do so.” She finished.

                I just nodded again and sent on my way with some materials. Completely numb, I drove home not bothering to stop at daycare to pick up Jamie and Arabella. Upon walking into the door, I just sat down on the couch and stared at my hands. After about thirty minutes I made my way into our bedroom and stripped down and crawled into bed. Minutes turned into hours as I lay there and cried myself to sleep.

**************************

                Sebastian walked into the apartment surprised not to hear his two children or his wife of four years. After kicking off his shoes, he made his way into the apartment looking for his family. The sound of a door opening made him quickly turn around. His son and daughter came barreling into the apartment with their grandmother right behind them. She stopped dead in her tracks and took in her son’s appearance. His thick hair was buzzed very short on the top and she could tell part of his head had been shaved and his was sporting a thick goatee. He looked surprised to see his mother.

                “Mom?” Sebastian said surprised.

                “The daycare called, Jamie and Arabella were left there.” She replied looking at her son. “I tried calling Nic, but she didn’t answer. I also called the store and she’s off today.” She added.

                Sebastian looked puzzled before kneeling in front of Jamie. “Where’s momma at, bud?” He questioned looking at the four-year-old.

                “Mommy sick.” He replied standing near the coffee table where papers lay scattered.

                Sebastian noticed the papers at the same time his mother did and they both picked up some of the papers. In Sebastian’s hands were information pamphlets and in his mother’s, were papers from the doctor that broke her heart.

                “Why does she have stuff on breast cancer?” Sebastian wondered out loud. “Breast Cancer. Breast Cancer and Pregnancy. Treatment Options” He read aloud confused.

                “Invasive Intraductal Carcinoma, stage 1A.” She responded causing Sebastian to look up. “She has stage 1 breast cancer.” She added softly.

                “My wife has cancer.” He said quietly, his mind reeling.

*********************

                The sound of voices roused me from a restless sleep. Slipping into a pair of shorts and a sports bra, I slowly padded to the living room. Jamie was the first to spot me, shrieking my name and running full force towards me. Sebastian turned towards the hallway where I stood and just stared, pamphlets still in his hands. I knelt and lifted the boy up into my arms, Arabella choosing to curl up on the couch.

                “Hey, baby boy.” I smiled hugging Jamie tightly. “I’m sorry mommy didn’t get you and sissy. She wasn’t feeling good.” I added looking into his bright blue eyes.

                “Grammy picked us up.” He smiled hugging me again.

                “Thank you.” I mouthed looking at my mother-in-law before noticing Sebastian standing next to her.

                After sitting Jamie down, I made my way towards my husband. Once I stood in front of him, I couldn’t help myself. I just started laughing, his hair was _gone,_ and he had a ridiculous goatee. While we had Facetimmed while he was filming, it was different seeing him in the flesh. Running my hands up along his strong jaw up to his _very_ shortly buzzed hair noting the stern, grim look on his face. He didn’t move as I ran my fingers along his face, still laughing.

                “Who are you and what have you done with my husband.” I said looking into his blue eyes.  Standing on my toes, I reached up to give him a kiss, noticing he didn’t kiss me back.

                “Seb?” I questioned pulling away.

                “I can’t.” He started with gritted teeth, his lips in a tight line. “I can’t pretend everything’s ok, when it’s not.” He added waving the pamphlets in my face.

                “Oh, that.” I responded with a sigh.

                “How long have you known?” He ground out.

                “Sebastian.” His mother warned.

                “No, it’s ok. If he thinks I’ve kept this from him, he has every right to be angry.” I said looking at my mother-in-law before turning back to him. “But, I went to my oncologist for the first time today. Actually, you have every right to be upset. Your finding out your wife was diagnosed with cancer today.” I continued looking at him.

                “I knew you were on your way home and we were going to talk about it tonight, I just had to get all of the ‘poor pitiful me’ out of the way first. I’m going to fight like hell. I’m going to beat this and give birth to a healthy baby boy. But, I need you. I need your support.” I finished.

                He stood quiet for a moment before pulling me into his arms. “I’m not going anywhere and we’re going to fight this together and we’re going to beat this together.” He crushed his lips to mine before speaking again. “I am so sorry you had to find out alone. I should’ve been here.” He added holding me tightly.

                He let me go before I was enveloped in his mother’s arms. “Neither of you are alone in this.” She said softly hugging me tightly. “Whatever you need, I’m here.” She added.

                “Mommy?” Arabella spoke for the first time that evening.

                “Hey, baby.” I smiled moving to the toddler.

                “I hungry.” She spoke in a soft voice.

                “You are?” I asked causing her to nod. “You hungry too, Jamie?” I asked as he walked over to me and climbed up into my lap.

                He nodded, and I smiled before asking. “What would you like?”

                “Omelets.” They both answered.

                “You want daddy’s omelets?” I asked with a laugh. “Go ask him.” I nodded towards Sebastian.

                Sebastian smiled before speaking. “Come help daddy fix ‘em.”

                I watched for a moment as my three loves headed towards the kitchen. A smile crossed my face before I moved to the kitchen with them.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There will be many more flashbacks once this progresses. Up next, pharmacy life as her inducement draws closer and closer. With a little Sebby fluffiness thrown in.

                As a new day dawned, a Saturday, I was just wanting to stay in bed and pretend yesterday didn’t happen. Since it was my weekend off, I had garnered myself a three-day weekend. I slowly slipped out of bed and slipped into some shorts and tugged off my nightshirt and slipped into a sports bra and tank top.  I padded out of our bedroom and was immediately greeted with the smell of pancakes and coffee. As I reached the kitchen a yawn escaped my lips alerting my husband to my presence.

                Sebastian turned his head and softly smiled as I padded over to him. Reaching my hand up, stretching my fingers out and running them along his bare back. I took stock of the temporary tattoos on the back of his neck and forearm. I was very grateful that those were already starting to fade, and his beard was starting to grow back. I had even noticed that he had buzzed his goatee slightly, however, I wished the hair on his head would grow as fast as his beard. I softly pressed a kiss to his shoulder.

                “Good morning, sweetheart.” Sebastian softly said opening his arm and I slipped through pressing myself into his side.

                “Good morning, baby.” I said standing on my toes to peck his cheek. “Smells good.” I added slipping my arm around him.

                Sebastian grinned before dipping his head and capturing my lips with his. What started out as a soft quick kiss soon turned more passionate. He sat the spatula down and gripped my hips and pushed his tongue into my waiting mouth. The taste of his kiss, of _him_ , was something that drove me crazy. He was a big reason, along with my kids, that I was going to fight like hell for my family, my _life._ Our tongues battled for dominance, gripping each other tightly, until we smelt burning pancakes. We quickly separated, and Sebastian moved to cut off the stove and remove the pan. I stood there staring at him biting my lip.

                “What?” He laughed looking at me.

                “I felt like I was kissing someone else.” I said biting my lip. “And it was kinda hot.” I added flushing as I looked down.

                “Oh really?” He asked with an arched brow. “You found that hot?” He questioned stepping back over to me.

                After trapping me against the wall and his strong body, his head dipped, and he captured my lips with his. This time much more passionate and heated than the last. His hands started roaming against my hips before dipping underneath my shirt, fingertips grazing my skin. As our tongues dueled, his fingers stared roaming much lower before dipping beneath my shorts and grazed my folds. The moan that tore its way from my throat was swallowed up by his own mouth. His lips moved from my mouth to my neck, sucking bruises along my collarbone. Bruises that would be easily hidden by the business attire that I wore in the pharmacy, but visible in a tank top. Sebastian always told me, it was his way of reminding the world I was his.

                “Seb.” I moaned breathlessly.

                Before anything could get more intimate, a little voice spoke. Sebastian quickly removed his hand from my folds and sucked the wetness from his finger while keeping his eyes locked on mine. He backed up and giving me a view of my son trying to climb into the high bar chair.

                “Jamie, don’t do it.” I scolded looking at him. “Sebastian James Stan, don’t you climb into that chair.” I scolded as Sebastian made it over before Jamie could topple backwards.

                “Bud, if you climb in it, you can fall.” Sebastian said looking at the mini version of himself. “Me and momma don’t want you getting hurt.” He added kissing the boy on top of the head.

                I moved to go and wake up Arabella while Sebastian finished up our breakfast. Today was going to be the day that we had decided to tell the kids about the cancer. I had decided that I would also tell my techs and fellow pharmacist that I would be going out for the induced labor, surgery, and radiation.

_*Last night*_

_“What are you planning on doing about this?” Sebastian questioned looking at me._

_We had finished dinner for the evening and Georgeta had already returned home, reminding us that if we needed anything at all to let her know. Jamie and Arabella had been given their baths and put to bed. Sebastian and I had finished ours and were starting to wind down for the evening when the conversation turned to my cancer._

_“I’m going to start my FMLA paperwork tomorrow incase this chemo makes me too sick. I can do intermittent leave for now and if it gets too bad before they induce labor, I can start continuous leave. The leave won’t end until I feel more like myself after the surgery and radiation.” I started looking at him._

_“When is your first chemo treatment?” He asked looking at me._

_“It’s actually pills that they are giving me.” I responded looking at him. “I’m also getting my hair cut off since it may fall out anyway. Might as well prepare myself for what could come.” I added._

_“What else are they planning on doing?” He asked looking at me._

_“When I’m 24 weeks they’re going to induce my labor,” I started._

_“That’s in two weeks, will he live?” He asked with wide eyes._

_“I know, and, there’s a 50-70% chance of survival.” I stated looking at him. “He’ll have to stay in the NICU until his due date before we can bring him home.”_

_“That’s three months from now.” He said running his fingers over his head. “Our son is going to be spending the first three months of his life in a hospital rather than at home with his parents, brother and sister.” He added._

_“Baby, I am so sorry.” I said a tear rolling down my cheek as I reached for him. My heart broke at his concern for our son. He loved our kids more than anything in this world, they were his world, that much was obvious._

_“It’s not your fault, sweetheart.” Sebastian said touching my cheek. “You didn’t ask for this. But what are they going to do for you? I can’t lose my wife.” He added kissing me softly._

_“I’m going to be doing chemo, which I have to go and pick up in the morning, then once they induce labor, I’ll be prepped for surgery. They’re going to be doing a lumpectomy followed by seven weeks of radiation.” I said looking over at him. “That surgery will save as much breast tissue as possible and try to make it look more normal.” I added._

_“I don’t care how they look, as long as they get it all.” He said turning to me. “I just want my wife to be safe and live.” He added._

_“I know but I still need to fell like a woman and desirable.” I added with a sigh._

_“Honey, I will always want you. I love you so much.” He said softly cupping my cheek._

_“I love you too, Seb.” I said closing the distance, pressing our lips together.  “I want you to promise me something though.” I added._

                _“Name it, sweetheart.” Sebastian said against my lips._

_“Remarry.” I whispered. “If something should happen to me, remarry.”_

_“NO. No. We’re not going to even entertain the possibly of you dying.” He said strongly pulling away._

_“Seb, you deserve to be happy and not alone.” I said looking at him. “And our kids need a mother if I’m not here. I don’t want you alone, I want you happy.” I added._

_“I’m not having this conversation, not now.” He said standing up._

                I returned to the kitchen with Arabella on my hip and upon seeing her father, she reached out for him. Sebastian took her into his arms with a soft smile. We had a quiet breakfast as both of us mentally prepared for the conversation that we were about to have after breakfast. We finished before the kids and before I could stand up, Sebastian was gathering up our dishes. I moved to let Jamie out of the chair and set Arabella down after removing her from the high chair. Slowly I moved over to Sebastian and pressed my lips to his shoulder and whispered I’d see him in the living room. He nodded, choosing not to say anything out of fear that his voice would break. After about ten minutes we all were in the living room with Sebastian and I trying to find the right words. _How do you tell two children under five that their mother is sick and may die?_

“Guys, momma and I need to tell you something.” Sebastian started.

                “You remember a few days ago when I was really sick?” I asked butting in and taking over where my husband was struggling to keep his emotions in check. They both nodded. “Well, I went to the doctor and was told I’m really sick.” I said looking at them.

                “Are you going to be ok mommy?” Jamie asked looking up at me with his crystal blue eyes. _God, you look so much like your father._ I thought to myself.

                “Honestly baby, I don’t know.” I said with a sigh.

                “What is wrong with momma is going to make her really sick and”  Sebastian said, his voice fading as I lost myself in my thoughts.

                I was trying to memorize everything about my kids. From the specks of grey in the blue of Jamie’s eyes, just like Sebastian’s. Or the bits of blue, yellow, and brown in Arabella’s eyes, like my own. Both of their tanner skin, slightly more than my own which must have been the Romanian in them. Both had high cheekbones, traits of their European heritage of their father and Cherokee heritage from me. When they spoke, they both had that New York accent rather than the North Carolinian twang that I had, even after living in New York for five and a half years. They both loved oldies music, just like their mother. The first time Arabella caught me watching figure skating, she made her little mind up that she wanted to do that when she got ‘bigger’. Both Sebastian and I had discussed it and decided that if she wanted it, we would make it happen, even though he was absolutely terrified of something happening to his daughter. I was so lost, I didn’t realize that Sebastian had stopped talking and both kids had climbed in my lap and were hugging me tightly.

                “We’ll kiss you better mommy.” Jamie said looking up at me causing Arabella to nod and pepper my face with kisses.

                “Thank you, babies.” I said sucking in a breath pulling them tighter while Sebastian rubbed my back comfortingly.

                The rest of the day was spent with lots of kisses and a pile of blankets and pillows as we spent the rest of that Saturday in the living room floor watching movies in between naps. That small gesture seemingly lifting my spirits for now.


	3. Chapter 3

                Sunday passed with much the same as Saturday. The kids were hellbent on trying to ‘kiss me better’ and Sebastian tried to catch the moment on camera. Now, however, the weekend was over, and it was back to the weekly grind that was pharmacy life. As much as I loved my job, I hated the sound of my alarm going off. It was even worse when Sebastian was home. It always seemed that whenever I was pregnant, the baby kicked worse at night whenever Sebastian wasn’t at home; not allowing me much time to sleep. Whenever he was home, however, he always had a way to calm the child growing in my womb enough to get a good night’s sleep. With Sebastian being home, I didn’t have to worry about getting the kids up and to daycare, so I was able to get a little more sleep.

                The alarm starting blaring and I started to blindly reach for it. After finally finding my phone and cutting my alarm off, I slowly rose out of bed and made my way to the bathroom. When I exited, I noticed that the closet light was on and Sebastian was out of bed. I wasn’t surprised, he usually got up when I did so that we could have a few moments to ourselves. Settling on a pair of black maternity dress pants and a sleeveless blouse, I joined Sebastian in the kitchen where he was whipping up some omelets for us. I slowly walked up behind him and ran my fingers along his back.

                “Good morning, baby.” I said kissing his shoulder.

                “Morning.” He grinned turning his head and pressing his lips to my forehead.

                He moved his hand from the handle of the frying pan to my round belly and smiled before kneeling, lifting my shirt and pressing his lips to my belly. “And good morning to you, little guy.”  He softly said. “Be good while you and momma are at work.” He added earning a kick from his son.

                He lightly chuckled before rising and pressing his lips to mine in a tender and sweet kiss. Once we separated he softly whispered ‘I love you’ against my lips before pressing his lips to my forehead and letting me go. Sebastian turned back to the stove and plated our omelets and placed them on the bar in the kitchen and as I took a seat, he moved to pour some orange juice for me and coffee for himself. As we started eating, small talk was made.

                “I’ll be going to get my hair cut after my shift today.” I stated looking at him.

                “How short are you going?” He asked looking over.

                “A real short pixie.” I responded taking a bit of omelet. “Gonna thin it out a bit too.” I added.

                He nodded, deciding to not to voice his opposition to getting my hair cut. “How are you feeling?” He asked turning the topic of conversation towards the new medication.

                “I can already tell that it’s affecting me. I’m feeling more tired and slightly nauseous but otherwise ok.” I said looking at him. “I’m waiting on the approval for the leave, which will start after my weekend off again.” I added.

                “Speaking of off weekends, I heard from mom you wanted her to keep the kids that weekend.” He said with an arched brow.

                “It’s Championship weekend and you know how I get.” I said biting my lip. “It’s just a shame that I can’t actually go. You can actually go to games to support your school, I can’t sadly.” I added.

                He just grinned and we both finished our breakfast in silence. Soon enough, sadly it was over, and I finished getting ready. Once I was ready, I crept into each of the kids’ rooms and gave them soft kisses. After a quick kiss from Sebastian, I was out the door.  The drive to the store was a short and quick one and I made it there before my opening technicians. Walking into the store and arriving at the pharmacy I noticed the picture of myself on the wall, longer hair, happier. Underneath my photo read

_Nikki Stan, PharmD_

_Pharmacy Manager_

_University of North Carolina, School of Pharmacy_

                A soft smile crossed my face knowing that underneath that photo was my old one with my maiden name on it. I also, always, got a kick out of my diploma that had to be displayed. Since getting married and changing my legal name, my registration and license had my legal name on it, but my diploma still had my full maiden name _Leighanne Nicole Walker_. And, to make it more difficult on those that inspected us for proper licensing; I, of course, didn’t go by my first name, I went by a nickname.  We made a big joke out of it when I came to the store. As pharmacy manager, I had my name on the wall in three different places, with three different names. Shaking those thoughts out of my head, I turned my attention to the task at hand. Credentials had to be gotten, prescriptions needed to be put in and counted, calls needed to be made, and all before 1pm when my staff pharmacist came in for the evening shift.

                Upon getting my credentials, I set to work on getting things prepared for the upcoming day. When the clock struck eight, I moved around the counter and pulled back the gate opening the pharmacy for the coming day. A page and a half of scripts to put in and nine pages to count. _This is going to be a long day._ Thankfully the morning went off without a hitch and before I knew it, it was noon.  I was over mixing an antibiotic when one of my techs popped her head around the corner.

                “Sebastian’s here and it seems he’s brought food.” She grinned looking at me.

                I rubbed my belly feeling the baby kick as I turned and smiled. Handing off the Amoxicillin bottle to my other tech at the drive thru, I made my way towards my counter where Sebastian came into view. We made eye contact and he held up a bag of food with a smile and it was at that moment my stomach decided to growl. My grin got bigger I noticed the top of a curly head. My eyes tracked over to the counter and I saw crystal blue eyes of my son. My lead tech gave me a knowing look and I decided that I could sit down for a moment.

                “Meet me in the breakroom.” I grinned at my husband. “Go with daddy bud, I’ll see you on the other side of that door.” I added pointing to the door that was on the other side of the breakroom.

                “I’ll be back in a bit.” I said smiling at my tech.

                She nodded, and I walked towards the door. A soft smile crossed my face as I pushed open the door. Jamie was the first to reach me and I lifted him into my arms. Sebastian made his way over to where I stood and pressed his lips to my forehead.

                “Hi, sweetheart.” He said with a soft smile. “Thought you might be hungry.” He added moving towards the table where the food sat.

                “Well, thank you.” I grinned taking a seat.

                I took a seat with Sebastian across from me and each of the kids beside me. Sebastian started pulling the food out of the bag and we start eating. It was a quiet lunch when Sebastian turned to me.

                “Have you told anyone yet?” He asked looking at me.

                “Not yet.” I said shaking my head. “I did hear that my leave has been approved, not that it mattered anyway.” I added.

                Sebastian arched a brow in response to my remark. “I..um..remember that interview I had a few weeks back.”

                “Yeah.” He nodded.

                “Well, they offered me the job.” I continued looking at him.

                “That’s great baby.” Sebastian smiled.

                “Well, there’s one problem.” I said looking at him. “You know, I have cancer.” I added.

                “So, you turned it down then.” He said with a sigh.

                “Not yet, I got a voicemail, so I haven’t _actually_ talked to anyone yet.” I said running my hand through my hair. “I don’t want to turn it down, but I can’t accept the job with this hanging over my head. It’s not right and fair to them for me to accept the job then go out for everything.” I added.

                “I’m also going to tell Scott about the cancer today and James is making arrangements to cover my shifts.” I finished.

                He nodded before speaking. “Before I forget, mom’s getting the kids this afternoon and dropping me by here. I’m going to go with you to get your hair cut.”

                “Seb, you don’t have to.” I said shaking my head.

                “I’m going.” He said pointedly.

                I nodded rising crumpling up my hamburger wrapper. After tossing my finished lunch in the trash can, I moved to pressing a kiss to each of my kids’ heads. Sebastian stood and pressed his lips to mine in a soft kiss.

                “I love you.” He softly said.

                “I love you too.” I said with a soft smile. “Bye my babies.” I said with a smile getting one last hug.

                “Bye mommy.” They said hugging me.

                “I’ll see you in a couple hours.” He said pressing his lips to my forehead.

                I nodded before moving to unlock the door leading into the pharmacy. Before I know it, I was seeing my counterpart, Scott, come into the pharmacy. It took a short moment for him to get settled in and for the pair of us to get the few upcoming prescriptions checked. I stalled for as long as I could, knowing that I would be telling him in a few moments then my techs at our monthly meeting this weekend. I truly didn’t want to tell anyone about the cancer outside of my family, however, I had to tell my staff.

                “Is everything ok, Nikki?” Scott asked turning to me, noticing my change in demeanor and the sigh that escaped my lips.

                “Actually, I need to have a word with you.” I said turning my head.

                We stepped out of earshot before I started. “I went to the doctor and was diagnosed with stage 1 breast cancer. I’ve already got leave and the chemo meds, but I’ll be going out in a couple weeks once they induce my labor and I’ll be out a few months. They’re working on getting the person that is going to replace me.” I rushed out.

                “Wait, you have cancer?” He asked with wide eyes.

                “Yeah.” I nodded.

                “Wow.” He said shaking his head and rubbing the back of his neck.

                “We have a consult up front.” Our lead tech said looking at the two of us. “And, Nikki, Sebastian’s here.” She added.

                “Thanks.” I said with a smile.

                “Go ahead, I’ve got this.” Scott said with a smile.

                I nodded and after gathering up my things and bidding my staff afternoon, I made my way to where Sebastian was sitting. He looked up from his phone upon hearing the door shut and rose with a smile. He reached for my hand and we headed out of the door. We were well on our way when Sebastian told me that we had an appointment for a consultation for the cut.

                “Why do I need a consultation for a haircut?” I asked looking over at him.

                “They specialize in hair loss.” He responded glancing at me. “They have wigs too, if you choose that.” He added.

                “Wait, babe, I’m not shaving my head.” I snorted.

                “I know that.” He laughed. “I mean for if it falls out. They sell wraps too.” He added.

                “Now, I would like to get a couple wraps; I’m cutting it real short.” I said running my fingers over his. “My hair is started to fall out anyway.” I added.

                “So soon?” He asked with wide eyes.

                “Dunno if it’s the chemo or just regular shedding.” I said shaking my head. “It’s not mass clumps or anything, but I’ve noticed more coming out.” I added.

                “Oh.” He said shaking his head.

                Two hours later and I found myself glancing down at the hair scattered around my chair. The hair that was left on my head was very short and thinned out. I looked up in the mirror and didn’t recognized myself. I, then, caught Sebastian’s gaze in the mirror and he softly smiled at me. I softly smiled back before rising out of the chair. Since I was a cancer patient, my cut was free even though I protested. We left hand and hand and headed towards our apartment.

                “Figured you’d want to change and wash the hair off yourself before tonight.” Sebastian said softly.

                “What’s tonight?” I asked looking at him.

                “We’re going out to dinner tonight, all of us.” He said with a soft smile.

                I looked over at Sebastian with a soft smile and squeezed his hand affectionately. After the short drive home, I quickly got showered and changed. Since I’d never had my hair cut short before, I wasn’t sure how to style it. After about thirty minutes, Sebastian made his way into the bathroom where I stood staring at my reflection in the mirror.

                “Sweetheart?” He questioned looking at me.

                “I dunno what to do to it.” I replied looking up at him. “What should I do to it.” I added.

                “How about this?” He questioned holding up one of the wraps. “Until you can figure out. You can look around at different styles and try some.” He added.

                I nodded with a sigh and took the proffered wrap and slipped it into place. Looking back at my husband, he gave me a soft smile before stepping over to where I stood. He slipped his arms around me and nuzzled his face in my neck and pressed a soft kiss to it.

                “You’re so beautiful.” He softly murmured.

                I turned around in his arms and arched a brow. “What?” He lightly laughed.

                “I’m a lot of things, but beautiful isn’t it.” I snorted. “I’ve wacked off my hair, my face is losing color, I’m actually starting to look like I’ve got cancer. I’ve noticed that I’m losing weight from the chemo because I don’t want to eat,” I continued.

                “No, stop.” He said cupping my cheek. “You’re beautiful, despite all that, you’re beautiful. When you’re puking your guts out, ugly crying wanting it to end, I’ll still think you’re beautiful and I’ll be right here for you.” He added.

                In that moment, I was so overcome with emotion, I flung myself into his arms.  We stood in the bathroom hugging each other tightly for what seemed like forever before sharing a tender kiss. Once we separated, we headed off to the restaurant to have dinner with his mother and our kids. That was the last family night we’d have.


	4. Chapter 4

               The next few days passed without much incident. Sebastian had decided not to take anymore roles but still had to do press for _Infinity War_. And that meant, having to go overseas. I convinced him to go on the press tour despite his pleading to stay home. Unhappy that I couldn’t go to London, or Beijing, or Sydney, or LA, I had decided that there was no way I was missing the New York premiere. I had even found the perfect dress and it was all to take place in between the birth of our son and my surgery.

                Today was a day that I had taken off since Sebastian was heading out of the country for a couple days. The day started off like any other, stretching after I woke up I sat up and ran my fingers through my hair. It was then that I looked down at my hands and noticed the clumps of hair. Turning my head, I noticed the hair that was scattered over mine and Sebastian’s pillows. I rose out of the bed and walked into the bathroom. The first thing I noticed was my pale white skin and severely balding head. Tears immediately started to stream down my face.  

                Slowly making my way into the kitchen where Sebastian was, I took note that he was staring out the balcony window drinking a cup of coffee. I weakly called his name and he slowly turned around. Tears blurred my vision and I started to get severely lightheaded.  I don’t remember much else other than Sebastian calling my name.

                                                                                ******************************

                “What happened to her?” Georgeta asked, concern laced in her voice.

                “I don’t know. She walked into the kitchen, crying and next thing I know she’s nearly hitting the floor.” He responded rubbing the back of his neck. “I caught her before she hit the ground.” He added.

                “Mom, I can’t lose her.” He continued with a shaky voice. “I don’t know what I’ll do if I lose her.” He added.

                “Oh sweetheart.” Georgeta said wrapping her arms around her son after he collapsed in a chair. “You’re not going to lose her.” She added.

                “Seb!” A voice called out rushing over followed by the very pregnant wife of his best friend. “We came as soon as we heard.” He added.

                “Auntie Jenny!” Arabella cried out seeing her godmother and ‘aunt’.

                “Ari, baby.” Jenny exclaimed scooping the toddler up into her arms. “Seb.” She said looking at Sebastian and giving him a one-armed hug.

                “What happened?” Chris asked looking at the younger man.

                “I’m not sure. We knew this could happen with the chemo but we both were hoping that it wouldn’t happen this soon. She just got weak and passed out I guess. I brought her over here.” He added.

                                                                                ********************************

                After what seemed like forever, the small group was led into a room where a very pale woman lay.  Wires were hooked up to her followed by steady beeping from the monitor. She wasn’t moving, and Sebastian was scared that she wasn’t going to wake up. He slowly made his way over to her bedside and took a seat. Once he reached for her hand, tears starting to fall from his eyes. In front of his eyes was his wife’s unmoving body, everything that made her the woman that had stolen his heart was gone. Holding her hand in his own, he pressed his lips to her hand.

                “Please,” Sebastian said softly. “Please, don’t leave me.  I can’t do this without you.” He added salty tears hitting her hand. After a few moments he laid his head against her side, still holding her hand.

                Sebastian wasn’t sure how long he laid there, he figures he must had fallen asleep, because when he woke up; he felt someone playing with his hair. He softly smiled before lifting his head, expecting to see his daughter playing with his hair. To his surprise though, the arm he saw in his hair belonged to the love of his life.

                “Thank God.” He exclaimed. “You’re awake.” He added smashing his lips to hers.

                                                                                ************************************

                “What happened?” I weakly asked looking into the tear filled blue eyes of my husband.

                “You passed out.”  He softly said cupping my cheek. “You came into the kitchen, said my name and passed out.” He added.

                “Work.” I responded.

                “Don’t worry about that, you’re on continuous leave now.” He said. “There’s no way in hell you’re going now.” He added.

                “No,” I started shaking my head. “I was coming to tell you I wasn’t going in. That I _couldn’t_. I was too sick.” I added.

                “I wanted you to call James for me.” I finished looking at him.

                “That’s taken care of.” He said. “You just need to rest now. They’re going to keep you overnight.” He added.

                “What’s wrong with me?” I asked.

                “The chemo made you too weak and you got severely dehydrated from not eating or drinking.” He said glaring at me. “They’re pumping you full of fluids and giving you something for nausea.” He added.

                “Oh.” I said softly.

                “But just rest now.” He said softly kissing my forehead.

                I closed my eyes just wanting a short nap, not expecting sleeping for the rest of the day. The next time I opened my eyes, everyone had left except for Sebastian. Slowly shifting, I tapped his shoulder and then tapped the bed beside me. It took a moment or two for him to get that I wanted him up there with me, but he finally kicked his shoes off and climbed into the bed with me. After curling up against each other, we both drifted off. The next day passed with much the same. I was still rather weak but what no one saw was that Sebastian was feeding me the food. Once the doctors were pacified with the fact that I was eating once again, I was released into my husband’s care. Upon arriving home, we were greeted by Georgeta and our two boisterous kids. Sebastian helped me inside and to our bedroom since I was still weak. My angel of a mother-in-law stayed and explained to the kids that I was still rather sick. Two hours after getting home, Sebastian brought a plate of a turkey sandwich and chips into the room. 

              “I’m not hungry.” I said looking at him.

              “I heard your stomach, you are. Don’t lie to me.” He responded sitting the plate in my lap.

              “I don’t want it Seb.” I said.

              “You have three choices. You can eat it on your own, I can feed it to you if you’re too weak, or I can take your stubborn ass back to the hospital and they can put a feeding tube down your throat.” He said glaring at me.

                After letting out a huff, I lifted the sandwich to my lips and tore off a big bite with a roll of my eyes.  Sebastian rolled his eyes and took a seat on the bed next to me. When my lunch was finished, he took my plate and made his way to the kitchen before coming back with the kids. Slowly over the next two days, I started to get stronger. While I wasn’t going to be going to work anytime soon, I didn’t want to look and feel presentable before I saw other family and friends.

                “How are you feeling today, love?” Sebastian asked walking into the bedroom.

                “better.” I responded slowly edging further up in bed. “and hungry actually.” I added taking my time and swinging my feet off the side of the bed.

                “Good enough for company?” He asked taking a seat next to me. “Chris and Jenny want to come by.” He added.

                “Let’s eat some breakfast and I’d like a shower, I’m sure I stink.” I lightly laughed. “Then they can come by.” I added.

                Sebastian nodded and after deciding on the shower first, he got the water regulated. Once it was regulated, ever so slowly and gently, he helped me into the bathroom. Letting me strip myself down, he helped me into the shower. Since I was stronger, he sat of the toilet seat just incase I needed him.  Once I was showered and shaved to my liking, I slowly climbed out. Sebastian gave me a soft smile and followed me back to the bedroom where I started to get dressed. After a few moments, I was seated in the kitchen at the bar while he started on some pancakes for breakfast.

                “I told them if you were up to it, they couldn’t stay too long.” He softly said looking at me.

                “Ok.” I said nodding.

                Once breakfast was over, I slowly made my way over to the couch. Sebastian cleaned up from breakfast and made his way into the couch and we curled up together and he tugged me into his arms. It was the weekend of the ACC tournament and it was being played in Brooklyn. I was a little shocked when I went to work the last day to have flowers delivered. In with the flower were two tickets to the _entire_ tournament.  I shouldn’t have been surprised, Sebastian was sweet like that, but I had looked at going to the tournament and saw just how expensive those tickets were. I loved my husband dearly, but he knew better than to spend that amount of money on me. Of course, this was the man who surprised me with a trip to Paris only to propose while touring the palace at Versailles.

_Five Years Ago_

_“Paris, I can’t believe you brought me to Paris.” I said spinning around looking at my boyfriend of two years._

_“It’s been a long time since you’ve been on a vacation and you said you always wanted to come to Paris.” Sebastian said shrugging his shoulders. “Besides, you just graduated. You’re a pharmacist now, you deserve a break.” He added._

_It was true, I had just graduated from the University of North Carolina’s School of Pharmacy in Chapel Hill. I, now, was a pharmacist; I was able to practice at any pharmacy in the country. Professionally I had just accepted a position at CVS as one of their staff pharmacists after completing my internship there. It was during this time, Sebastian asked me to move New York to move in with him. I accepted, the only problem was that I had to live and work at my store for at least six months. So, in six months, I would be moving from the only home state I’d ever known to up North. However, what I didn’t know was that this trip had other motives._

_“But, Paris. You brought me to Paris.” I said looking at him._

_“I was thinking we could go down to Versailles.” He said with a soft smile. “You’ve always wanted to go there.” He added._

_“You’re taking me to Versailles?” I exclaimed excitedly._

_“I am.” Sebastian grinned._

_I squealed and jumped into his arms. We spent the next couple days walking around the city looking at the sights. He took me up the Eiffel Tower and got a picture of us with the Tower in the background at sunset. It was the perfect vacation only to be made more perfect when we went to visit Versailles the next day._

_Sebastian woke me up the next morning with a French spread for breakfast. After having a nice sweet romantic breakfast with the balcony windows open, the pair of us got ready for the day. We drove the twelve miles to the palace. My eyes nearly bugged out of my head seeing the gate._

_“Built in 1624 by Louis XIII, it was a hunting lodge until it was enlarged to a royal palace by Louis XIV. The seat of political power was moved from Paris to Versailles until 1789 when the royal family was ordered to move back to Paris during the French Revolution. During the reign of Louis XIV, the senior nobility was pressured to spend, if not live, at the palace as a form of political control. It was during the second phase of expansion, during (1678-1715) that what would come to be known as the Hall of Mirrors was constructed.” I read from a brochure._

_“Uh-huh.” Sebastian mumbled looking around._

_We walked around for a little while longer before ending up in the famous hall of mirrors. There wasn’t anyone in the hall with us and I stopped to snap photos. When I turned around, Sebastian was down on one knee._

_“Seb?” I questioned confused._

_He opened the little black box in his trembling hands and my hands flew to my mouth._

_“I fell in love with you the second I met you. That day, I didn’t know going to my first Tar Heel game I’d meet my future. I saw you a couple times with your friends and was really wanting to meet the pretty passionate woman. When I finally met you, that was it. I knew I was a goner, I knew that I’d be preparing for this day. I swear I will love you my whole life. I’ll be there every step of the way, from the good days to the bad. It would be my honor and great joy to be by your side. Will you, Leighanne Nicole Walker, do me the great honor of becoming my wife?” Sebastian said trembling._

_“Oh Seb.” I mumbled trembling. “Yes.” I nodded tears falling from my eyes._

_“Really?” He said looking up hopefully._

_Overcome with emotion, I just nodded. I watched him slip a beautiful diamond ring on my hand before wrapping his arms around me. Our lips crashed together, and we embraced in a tight hug._

_“I love you.” Sebastian said against my lips. “I love you so much.” He added._

_“I love you too.” I said tears streaming down my eyes._


	5. Chapter 5

                Over the coming days I started getting stronger and stronger. While I still had moments where I was sick, and Sebastian was taking care of me, the moments and days where I took care of myself and helped take care of our kids were more and more frequent. I was a mere three days from my inducement and I was looking forward to meeting our son. The upcoming surgery, on the other hand, was something I wasn’t looking forward to. However, for today, since I was feeling better, Sebastian was taking me out on a date.

                The night that was planned was a surprise to me other than we were going to be having dinner. I was told, however, that Georgeta was going to take the kids for the night. It had been quite some time since it been just Sebastian and I. Alone time with my husband was something I was looking forward to the most. I was packing up Jamie’s favorite stuffed animal when I felt a pair of lips against my neck and strong hands holding my hips.

                “Hello love.” I smiled petting his hand.

                “Hello, sweetheart.” He softly said kissing the side of my head. “How are you feeling?” Seb asked with an affectionate rub of my shoulder.

                “Today’s a good day.” I said with a soft smile and turning around in his arms.

                I looked up into his crystal blue eyes before closing the distance and meeting our lips. His large hand cupped my jaw while his other hand ran up and down my side. His tongue peeped out and ran along my bottom lip begging for entrance. Our tongues battled for dominance and before I knew what was going on, my legs started to get weak. And just as quickly as it began, Sebastian pulled away.

                “What’s wrong?” Sebastian said quickly. “Do you need to sit down, sweetheart?” He asked looking concerned.

                “I’m fine.” I said with a soft smile. “You just have the power to make me weak in the knees with just one kiss.” I added with a grin.

                “Are you sure?” He asked still looking concerned.

                “Love, I promise, I’m fine.” I said with a light chuckle. “I do, _however,_ need to finish packing Jamie’s bag and pack Ari’s.” I added turning away from my husband.

                “I’ll pack Ari’s.” Sebastian said with a soft smile. “Once you’re done with Jamie’s, start getting ready. Our reservation is at 8.” He added, pecking my forehead once again.

                I nodded and smiled at him before he disappeared to pack Arabella’s bag. Ten minutes passed, and I padded to our bedroom and shut the door. Making my way into the bathroom, stripping my clothes as I went, I stepped inside to regulate the water. Once the water was regulated, I slipped into the warm spray. I had grown accustomed to getting short showers, being the mother of two rowdy kids. When I emerged from the bathroom, I noticed a little black dress lying on the bed. I had a feeling that Sebastian had something else planned for our little night out other than dinner. After slipping into the dress, I put on a little makeup.  

                By the time I was finished with myself, Sebastian slipped into the bedroom and started to strip. Our eyes met, and he flashed me his infamous smirk and I felt the bush spread and take over my face. Quickly, I adverted my eyes to hide my embarrassment and a light chuckle came from my husbands’ lips. Forty-five minutes passed and finally Sebastian emerged from the bedroom dressed in a black suit complete with tie. Upon seeing him, I couldn’t stop the moan tumbling from my lips. A smirk spread across his lips as he made his way over to where I now stood. Coming to a stop in front of me, he cupped my cheek before pressing his lips to mine in a soft sweet kiss.

                “Are you sure you’re feeling up to this?” He asked softly.

                “Absolutely.” I grinned. “So where are we going?” I asked looking up at his blue eyes.

                “Since we’re about to leave, I’ll tell you.” He said looking down at me. “We’re going to the same place we had dinner for our first anniversary and where you told me you were pregnant with Ari.” He added with such love in his eyes.

                “Lincoln Square Steak.” I said, my eyes lighting up. “We’re going to Lincoln Square Steak?” I asked with a big grin.

                “Yes ma’am.” He said with a soft smile.

                We embraced a little while longer before there was a knock at the door. Sebastian went to answer the door and I went to round up the rowdy, boisterous little Stan’s. After a few minutes, we both said goodnight to the kids and all five of us were out the door. Sebastian and I walked hand in hand towards his car. After he opened the door for me and then closed it, he ran around to the other side and jumped in. It was a short drive over to the restaurant. Once we parked we walked, once again, hand in hand to the doors.

                “Hi, welcome to Lincoln Square Steak.” The hostess said with a smile, looking Sebastian in the eyes, not knowing who he was.

                “We have a reservation.”  Sebastian said with a soft smile.

                Bruno the owner was making his usual rounds when he looked up and spotted us and promptly made his way over. “Mr. and Mrs. Stan, I wasn’t aware you’d be dining with us this evening.” He said with a smile. “Mrs. Stan, you’re looking lovely as ever.” He added with a smile at me.

                “Thank you, Bruno.” I said with a soft smile.

                “Holly, take the Stan’s to our private table.” He said looking at his hostess.

                She nodded and led us to the private table and Sebastian held out the chair for me. After sliding my chair up, he took his seat across from me. We made small talk as we looked over the menu making our choices. Our waiter came and left with our orders. We continued making small talk and I noticed Sebastian kept glancing at me.

                “What?” I asked taking a sip of my drink.

                “You are so beautiful.” Sebastian said with a soft smile.

                “Yeah, I’d have to disagree with you there love.” I snorted. “Are you ready to meet your son?” I asked.

                “You need to believe me when I say that you’re beautiful.” He said looking at me. “And, yes, I’m ready and excited to meet him. Though, are we going to keep calling him baby boy Stan #2 when he gets here?” He asked looking at me.

                “I have an idea.” I said looking up at him. “How about Dimitri Gabriel.” I asked looking up at my husband and earning a hard kick from the boy in my womb.

                “Woah.” I said grabbing my stomach.

                “What’s wrong babe?” Sebastian asked getting worried.

                “Nothing, but whether you like it or not, I think our son just picked his own name.” I said sucking in a breath.

                “Did he?” He asked looking at me with wide eyes.

                “Yep, just like Jamie and Ari.” I said looking at him. “So, Sebastian James, Arabella Jean, and now Dimitri Gabriel.” I added with a smile looking down at my belly.

                “Dimitri Gabriel Stan.” Sebastian said trying his youngest son’s name on his tongue. “I like it. It’s Romanian.” He added.

                “Well, he is _half_ Romanian.” I said with a smile. “Thanks to his father.” I added.

                “God, I love you.” He said taking my hand in his. “So much.”

                “I love you too.” I replied squeezing his hand affectionately.

                We finished our dinner with small talk about the impending birth. We also talked about the fact that there soon would be another dweller in our apartment. We needed more space. So, it was decided that before we went into the hospital for the inducement, we’d go and look at a couple properties. Once dinner was finished, Sebastian paid the ticket and we made our way out of the restaurant. We made the short drive back to our apartment. Sebastian took my hand once again and we made our way into the apartment. He locked up for the night and hit the button on the stereo and tugged me into his arms.

                Sebastian swayed with me in his arms in the dim light of our living room. With a soft sigh, I rested my head against his shoulder. After a little while, he met my lips with his own. The kiss slowly intensified, and his hands slowly unzipped my dress. My hands stripped him of his jacket and unbutton his shirt. Soon clothes were puddled on the floor and we were blindly making our way to the bedroom, hands and lips not leaving each other. My back hit the bed and before I knew what hit me his face was between my spread legs. He flicked, licked, and sucked like a man having his last meal. It took a few moments to have me writhing beneath him.

                 “Seb.” I whimpered arching against him, grabbing at his growing hair.  “Mmmmmm.”

                A moan escaped his lips and a strangled cry left my lips. His tongue continued to flick at my clit through an intense orgasm until I started squirming.

                “Seb.” I whined pulling at his hair.

                He turned his head and placed a chased kiss to my thigh and lightly chuckled. He slowly creeped up my body until his lips met mine. Surprisingly, I had enough strength to flip us over and straddled his lap. He looked at me with wide eyes and I smirked. That cocky smirk left my face as soon as I sank down on his hardened length. A moan escaped my lips before I captured Sebastian’s lips with my own as I started to ride him.

                                                                                *************************

               As the sun rose the next morning, my eyes fluttered open and a soft smile graced my face. For the moment, everything was fine. Our life was normal, even though this was the first time since our honeymoon we were alone. A honeymoon where Jamie was conceived. Turning my head to the side, I smile graced my face at the sight of my husband. He was lying on his stomach with his head turned towards mine with a soft smile on his face as he slept. I reached out and ran my fingers along the side of his head and watched him as he slept.

              We had a few appointments today, looking at new places and then we were checking into the hospital at 3 for the inducement. During the night, in between being tangled up in the sheets and limbs, he told me that we were looking at 3 places and that his mother would meet us with the kids at the hospital. Once our little boy was born and he was taken to the NICU, I would be stitched up. They would allow us to see him before I would have to spend the evening in the hospital. One week later, I would undergo surgery to remove the tumor.

               I slowly rose out of bed, seemingly stronger than I was yesterday. Careful to not disturb his sleep, I crept into the kitchen at started pulling things out for coffee and pancakes. I was halfway through a cup of coffee and halfway through making pancakes and eggs when I heard a voice behind me.

               “God, woman you’re beautiful and you look good in my shirt.” He said behind me.

               He walked over and slipped his arms around me. When I finished up the eggs, I turned around in his arms. His eyes burned into mine before running his hand, as if to brush hair out of my face, along my face.

                “Seb.” I whined.

                “Babe, you’re beautiful, even with your bald head.” Sebastian said softly pressing his lips to mine. “You _have_ to believe me. I love you so much.” He added.

                “I love you too.” I grinned against his lips. “C’mon let’s eat before it gets cold.” I added.


	6. Chapter 6

                After breakfast was finished we started getting ready for the day. I was looking forward to having a little bit of the morning to ourselves _and_ we were getting to meet our son. After an hour and a half, we were out the door. The first place we were looking at was in Midtown with a whopping six bedrooms and seven bathrooms. That was all he would tell me. We made it to 51 st street and made our way up to the front door. Sebastian knocked on the door and softly smiled at me as we waited for the door to open. A tall blonde answered the door with a wide smile.

                “Sebastian, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” She said extending her hand towards his. “I’m Rebecca, I’ll be showing you around.” She added.

                “The pleasure’s all mine.” Sebastian responded with a smile. “It’s nice to put a face with the name.” He added.

                “And you must be his wife,” She said pausing. “Nikki, I believe.” She added extending her hand towards me.

                “Yes, ma’am.” I smiled looking at the blonde.

                “Now, Sebastian mentioned about wanting at least five bedrooms.” Rebecca said looking at the pair of us.

                “One for each of the kids.” Sebastian said looking at me, seeing the confusion on my face.

                “Right.” I nodded with a smile. “I’d personally like a bigger kitchen.” I added.

                “Yeah, my wife loves to cook.” Sebastian said squeezing my shoulder.

                “I think you’ll like this one then.” She smiled ushering us inside.

                I was immediately taken with the beauty of the place. It had everything I’d want in a home. It _looked_ like a home. Plenty of room for us to spread out. As we ventured further into the home, we found that each of the kids would be able to have their own bathrooms as well as the guest room. The kitchen was huge and once I was in remission I could see myself cooking Thanksgiving dinner in that kitchen. _However_ , there was one thing I wasn’t fond of.

                “How much?” I asked looking at her.

                “It’s around 12.” She said looking me.

                “12,000.” I asked.

                “Million, babe.” Sebastian answered looking down at me.

                “Excuse us a moment.” I said looking at Rebeca. “A word, _sweetheart_.” I stressed.

                Once we were out of earshot, I glared at him. “12 million dollars, are you out of your fucking mind?”

                “Babe, we can afford it.” Sebastian said looking down at me.

                “Seb, we are about to have three kids. I have cancer and one kid that’s going to be spending the first three months in the hospital. We can’t afford this.” I said looking at him.

                “Babe, I _promise_ you we can afford everything.” Sebastian said taking me by my shoulder. “I wouldn’t have set this up if I didn’t think we could.” He added.

                “Seb.” I sighed.

                “Do you like it?” He asked looking at me.

                “I do, but I want to see the other 2 places.” I said looking at him. “I’m assuming they’re in the millions too.” I added.

                “They are.” He nodded.

                We rejoined Rebecca and talked a little more about the property before leaving and heading to the next property. The next property was a condo on the 34th floor with six bedrooms and six bathrooms. It came complete with a large kitchen and the other thing I wanted most. There was a bedroom right off the master, one you could access from the master. I wanted a bedroom next to ours to use as a nursery, which is what we didn’t have in our current apartment.

                “I really like this one Seb.” I said looking at my husband. “This room could be the nursery when we bring Dimitri home and it’s right off what would be our room.” I gushed looking at him.

                “It’s got a really nice and big kitchen too.” He said with a smile. “And it’s only almost 5 million.” He whispered.

                “Cheaper.” I agreed. “I’m still not comfortable with the _million_ part.” I added.

                “Sadly, that’s the price for 6 bedrooms in Manhattan.” Sebastian said. “This isn’t North Carolina babe, things are much more expensive here.” He added.

                “I know, I know.” I sighed. “I just can’t get over paying millions for a place.” I added.

                “The upside, if we stop at 4 kids, we wouldn’t have to move again.” He said with a smile.

                “You have a point.” I nodded. “And I do _really_ like this one.” I added as we roamed through it one more time.

                “So, what do you think?” Sebastian asked as we stopped in the kitchen.

                “I can see us hosting Thanksgiving dinner here.” I said turning around him. “I can see us creating memories here.” I added.

                “So, do you want to look at the third one?” He asked when the realtor joined us.

                “No, I really do like this one.” I said biting my lip.

                “So, would you like me to start the paperwork?” The realtor asked hopefully.

                “What do you say babe?” He asked looking down at me with a smile.

                I bit my lip with a smile and answered. “How quickly could we move in?”

                “Once we get the paperwork rolling, it would be within a month.” She said with a soft smile.

                “Let’s do it, Seb.” I said with a grin.

                With that, we started the paperwork to buy our first place. Since moving in together we had rented that apartment, and this was going to be _our_ place. Once we finished up with the paperwork, it was two in the afternoon. There was no point in going back to the apartment, we headed over to Georgeta’s to see her and our kids.

                That hour went by so quickly and before we knew it, we were checking into New York’s Presbyterian Hospital. Once I was checked in, I was told that I would be given a C-section instead of drugs to induce the labor.

                “It’s safer for both you and your son.” Karen, my OB, said looking at Sebastian and I. “Seb, once she’s prepped you’ll be allowed into the room to be with her. Once he’s born, if he’s breathing on his own, you’ll be able to hold him for a little while before we take him up to the NICU. As we’re cleaning him, we’ll be stitching you up. Seb, if you want, you’ll be able to cut the cord just as you did with your other two.” She continued.

                We both nodded with a smile and Sebastian pressed a kiss to my temple. We held hands and they allowed my mother-in-law and kids into the room with us before the took me to the OR. We spent time as a family and Sebastian changed into scrubs. When the nurses came into the room, I kissed both Jamie and Ari and got a hug from Georgeta. Lastly, Sebastian pressed a soft kiss before they wheeled me out.

                They wheeled me into the OR and placed me onto the table. Once I was prepped, Sebastian came into the room and they began the surgery. After two hours, our son was pulled out of my abdomen. We heard a cry through the room and a tear fell from my eye. They stitched me up and cleaned me off, all under Sebastian’s watchful eye.

                “Congrats, you have a healthy baby boy, that has a set of lungs on him.” The nurse said with a smile. “Who wants him first?”

                “Go ahead, momma.” Sebastian said with a soft smile.

                “Oh, look at him, Seb.” I said tearfully. “Hi, baby.” I cooed as he stopped crying.

                “Hi, Dimitri.” I said with a smile. “Oh, Seb.” I said tearfully looking up at my husband.

                “God, I love you.” Sebastian said softly, tears in his own eyes. “The both of you.”

                “Have you thought of a name?” The nurse said coming over to us. “We’ve got his little foot prints and handprints for you guys.” She added.

                “Dimitri Gabriel Stan.” I grinned looking down at the little boy in my arms. “I’ve seen pictures of you as a baby and he looks like you.” I added looking up at my husband.

                “He’s got his mother’s head of hair too.” Sebastian said with a smile.

                 “What? He’s not bald.” I snorted.

                “This is temporary.” Sebastian said looking over at me. “You had a head full of jet black hair.” He added.

                “He does have a head full of hair like I did as a baby.” I smiled. “I love you so much, Dimitri.” I added kissing his forehead.

                “I know you’re anxious to hold your boy.” I grinned up at Sebastian as I offered Dimitri up.

                “Yes, I am.” Sebastian said grinning. “Buna ziua băiete.” He added looking down at him and speaking in his native tongue.

                “Sunt tatăl tau.” He grinned pressing his lips to his son’s forehead.

                “I’m going to be the only one in the house that doesn’t speak Romanian.” I laughed.

                “I’ll teach you babe.” He laughed. “Speaking with your Southern accent.” He added with a laugh.

                “I love you so much.” Sebastian said sitting on the edge of the bed, pressing his lips to mine as we enjoyed the last few moments before they came to take Dimitri to the NICU.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here's the update. As I stated before, this has lots of spoilers for Infinity War. If you haven't watched yet, don't read this chapter. Wait. You've been warned. :)

Seventy-two hours, that’s all it had been. Seventy-two hours since Dimitri had been born and during that time Sebastian and I spent as much time at the hospital as possible with him. The nurses had even let us hold him a few times, skin on skin contact was the best they’d say. He was growing like a weed. In that short amount of time, Dimitri had become the spitting image of his father; even more so than his elder brother. Today was the day, we were going to the _Infinity War_ premiere. I had a dress and everything and completely nervous.

                Being a _huge_ Marvel fan, I was excited and terrified about meeting Thanos. You would think it wouldn’t be as bad, being married to a Marvel actor; but trust me it wasn’t. As much as I loved being married to an actor in the Marvelverse, I was a fan first and foremost. And, this was one film that I’d been waiting ten whole years for. As they said in the marketing _10 years and it’s all led to this._ Tonight, I’d be among the first to see the _entire_ film.

                “You excited?” Sebastian asked walking into the living room.

                “Yes and no.” I responded looking up at him. I took the pro-offered sandwich and smiled at him. He sat a glass of lemonade on the table beside me before sitting down and slipping an arm around me.

                “You know, I _can_ fix myself a sandwich, right?” I asked looking up.

                “I know you can, but the doctor said take it easy, don’t move around a lot.” Sebastian said looking down. “You’re going to be doing a fair amount of walking tonight anyway.” He added with a sigh.

                “Sweetheart, I’ll be fine.” I said with a soft smile. “You know I’m not going to miss this.”

                “Trust me, I know.” He laughed. “You’ve been bugging me for days.”

                “It’s your own damn fault.” I shrugged. “I don’t want the whole plot, I just wanna know if Bucky’s going to be ok.” I added.

                “And, you know I’m not at liberty to say.” He said pecking my forehead. “Mom said she’d take the kids next week, by the way.” He added.

                “Yeah, I know.” I nodded, munching on a bite of the turkey sandwich. “She called yesterday. She’s going to pick them up from daycare on Wednesday and keep them for a few days.” I added.

                “She told me she’d bring them by to visit and take them to see Dimitri.” Sebastian said looking ahead at the television.

                “I just want to see how these first two treatments go before we decide to have them here for this or not.” I said not looking at him.

                “Wait,” Sebastian said turning to me. “You’re considering not having the kids here at all during this?” He asked with wide eyes.

                “It was bad enough, them seeing me while I was taking the chemo.” I started looking at him. “But for them to see me during the radiation. Babe, it’s going to be worse.” I added.

                “But, they’re going to miss you. And you’re going to miss them.” He said quietly. “And what about me?”

                “Sebastian, honey, they’ll still come and visit me.” I snorted. “I just don’t want them to see me during the worst of it. And as for you, I know you won’t leave my side. So, there’s no point in asking you to go to your mothers.” I added.

                “Besides, this all may be a moot point. I might tolerate the radiation well.” I finished.

                “But, I…” Sebastian started.

                “Hush, no. No more talk of my upcoming radiation.” I said putting my finger to his lips.  “You might not even survive tonight if Bucky dies.” I added.

                Sebastian cut his eyes my way but chose not to say anything. We spent the afternoon in comfortable silence until it was time to get ready for the evening. As time grew closer and closer, I started to get butterflies. I loved going with my husband to support his movies but hated walking the red carpet. I was terrified that I’d fall flat on my face, but Sebastian was always there with a comforting but firm hand keeping me steady.

                “Ready to go, beautiful?” He asked looking at me. I nodded with a smile.

                 He was dressed in an all-black suit and man, did my man look good. I was dressed in a floor length black gown with an open back. Earlier he had questioned my choice for black, my only response being that I was going to a funeral. A funeral for some of my favorite characters, I knew _someone_ I liked wasn’t going to make it out alive. We got into the car and headed to the premiere. It was a quiet ride over, Sebastian opting for silence over my desire to nag him about Bucky’s fate.

                Once we arrived, Sebastian climbed out and extended his hand. I took it and climbed out of the car. Another reason I was nervous about _this_ particular event, did I mention I was rocking the bald head look. I had decided to not wear a wrap, this is who I was now. I was a cancer patient who had lost their hair but at the same time, I had a wonderful support system that had my back no matter what. Cameras flashed and Sebastian and I both smiled and waved. We slowly made our way down the red carpet, stopping for interviews.

             “Sebastian! Nikki!” An interviewer called waving us over.

              Sebastian and I made our way over to where she was standing. “Hi.” I said with a big grin.

             “So, here we are.” She started looking at me. “As a Marvel fan, how are you feeling about tonight?”

             “As a fan, I’m terrified.” I lightly laughed. “I’ve been trying for a couple days to get this one to tell me if Bucky makes it out ok, but he won’t say anything.” I added.

             “I’m not allowed to.” Sebastian laughed throwing his hands up.

             “So, if Bucky doesn’t make it out, I take it, it’s the couch for Sebastian.” She laughed looking at the pair of us.

             “He’ll be in the doghouse, that’s for sure.” I laughed.

            We made our way further down the red carpet where our other ‘family’ was gathering. Scarlett spotted us first and made her way over. She enveloped me in a big hug before moving to Sebastian.  Little by little, everyone took their turn giving me big hugs.

             “There she is.” Robert said walking over and giving me a big hug. “How are you doing?”

             “Pretty good.” I smiled. “The last few days have been good days.” I added.

              We made our way inside the screening room and took our seats. Tom Holland was sitting in front of us, along with Robert. Sebastian was sitting to my right and Chris and Jenny were on my left. I would later realize that Anthony Mackie was sitting behind me and both Russo’s were nearby. The movie started without a hitch and a big grin spread across my face at seeing my left armless husband on screen. Then Chris appeared on screen.

              “Bearded is a good look on ya Cap.” I mumbled causing Chris to lightly snort and Sebastian smile.

               As the movie progressed, I watched intently and laughed when Thor met the Guardians. My mouth was left gapping oven and I looked between Chris and Sebastian when Red Skull appeared on screen.

              “Holy shit, he’s not dead.” I mumbled. “Just like in the comics. Oh shit.”

               I heard a snicker from nearby and I was _sure_ it was one of the Russo’s.  My jaw hit the floor and a muted gasp fell from my lips when Thanos threw Gamora to her death.

                “Star-Lord’s gonna kill your ass for that shit.” I muttered underneath my breath.

                The movie progressed with silence from me until and I was a little misty eyed at Wanda killing Vision, then Thanos turning back time and killing him again. Star-Lord screwing things up pissed me off. Then came the moment I wasn’t expecting but wanted. Rocket and Bucky interacting.

_How much for the gun?_

_It’s not for sale._

_Ok then, how much for the arm._

Bucky just looks at him and walks away.

_Oh, I’ll get that arm._

                  I looked over at my husband and just grinned. He looked over and offered a sad grin and I knew _something_ was going to happen. Then it came.

                  Thor slams Stormbreaker into Thano’s chest. I wanted to squeal.

_I told you that you would die for that._

_You should’ve gone for the head._

                  Then Thanos snapped his fingers. I wanted to close my eyes to not see what would come next. Thanos disappeared and I watched in horror as Bucky said a soft, scared _Steve_ before dissolving into dust leaving only the machine gun that was in his hand; leaving Steve to watch him die for a second time. And I couldn’t control my next reaction. I sent my elbow _hard_ into Sebastian’s side. A muttered gasp left his lips before we locked eyes and I gave him the dirtiest look I had. He was in for it and he knew it. And I watched one by one as Falcon, T’Challa _again_ , Wanda, Groot _again_ , Star-Lord, Mantis, Drax, Doctor Strange, and most heartbreakingly Spider-Man all be reduced to dust. I cried when he clung to Tony begging not to go before apologizing before finally becoming dust. Then the mid credits scene of Nick Fury and Maria hill meeting the same fate. The lights came up and I couldn’t stop the words tumbling from my lips.

                   “What the fuck did I just watch?” I said stunned.

                   “That bad?” Chris asked looking at me.

                   “It’ll be ok.” Anthony said patting my shoulder from behind.

                   “Where is that purple space grape, I’m gonna beat his ass.” I said craning my neck looking for Josh.

                   “Damn, babe.” Sebastian said rubbing his side.

                   “What happened Seb?” Chris asked leaning over.

                   “She fucking elbowed me.” Sebastian said looking over at me.

                   “Well, you should’ve fucking warned me.” I spat looking at him.

                   “What did you think?” A voice said from my left.

                   “I wouldn’t come over here man, she wants to kick your ass.” Chris said with a laugh.

                   “So, an honest opinion from a fan.” Joe Russo said walking over.

                    It seemed all eyes were one me. I slowly stood and looked at the actors looking up at me.

                   “Honestly?” I questioned. “You really want that?”

                   “No holes barred.” Anthony Russo said stopping nearby.

                   “Ok.” I nodded. “We were right for trusting you guys with this movie. Thanos, and you Josh, were the villain we were terrified of and that we deserved.” I started.

                   “It was worth the wait.” I continued. “But, c’mon. Why did you have to kill Bucky? Why Groot _again_ , I mean, at least Bucky wasn’t alone when he dies _again_. Poor Sam had to die alone.”

                   “And who the hell came up with Tom’s lines at the end?” I questioned crossing my arms.

                   “I actually adlibbed those myself.” Tom said looking up at me.

                   “Seriously?” I said with wide eyes. “You little shit, you’re going to play with everyone’s emotions.”

                   “But, well done.” I added with a grin and thumbs up. “Wakandan’s are badass as always.” I added smiling at Chadwick, Diani, and Leticia.

                   “All in all, it was a great film. Really, totally worth the wait.” I said. “And I heard in a recent interview with you guys, #4 will finish the story of _The Winter Solider_. That terrifies me.” I added looking at the brothers.

                  “It should.” Joe said looking at me.

                  We talked for a while longer before we departed for the night. While we could’ve went to one of the parties afterwards, I was exhausted and just wanted to crawl into bed. I would be having surgery in a couple days and since we were picking up the kids tomorrow after we visited Dimitri, I wanted to spend as much time with Sebastian as possible. Things were quiet in the car on the ride back to the apartment and once we got into the apartment, we didn’t speak. In all honesty, I wanted to throw a pillow at him or maybe elbow him again for not telling me beforehand.

                  “Still not going to talk to me?” Sebastian asked taking his jacket off.

                   I turned to him with a sigh. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?” I asked walking over to him.

                   I slowly pulled his shirt from his pants and unbuttoned it. Sebastian watched intently as I pulled his shirt from his body and inspected his side. “No, I’m ok.” He said softly.

                   “I’m sorry, I just reacted.” I said looking at him.

                   “I figured I had it coming.” He shrugged. “I knew I was going to get something when you saw it.” He added.

                    I ran my fingers along his side looking for a bruise. “I still shouldn’t have elbowed you.”

                   “You didn’t hurt me babe.” Sebastian laughed. “C’mon, let’s go to bed.” He added.

                   “I really did like the movie.” I said with a soft smile. “You are real right?” I asked poking him.

                   His melodic laugh sounded through the dark. “Yes, darling. I’m real.”

                   “I just had to make sure.” I muttered softly. “I love you.” I added snuggling into his arms.

                   “I love you too.” Sebastian said pressing his lips to my forehead.

 


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay, I was searching for the perfect place for our lovers to wed. Flashback of a wedding ahead.

The sun rose the next morning and came pouring through the curtains. I slowly rose, untangling myself from Sebastian and padded to the bathroom. When I exited the bathroom, I padded to the bed, stopping to pick up the clothes scattered across the floor. We both were exhausted from the events of the previous activities, so we just dropped our clothes on the floor. When I got closer to the bed, I stooped and picked up my nightgown and his boxers and tossed them in the nearby chair.

                “Come back to bed.” Came Sebastian’s sleepy voice. “You’re the one who wanted this.” He added patting the bed.

                “No, I wanted to sleep naked. I’m not entirely naked.” I snorted.

                I slipped back into bed and Sebastian tugged me into his arms. Enveloped in his warmth, I slipped back into sleep, sleeping on my side facing him. Some time later, I woke up to an empty bed. After slipping on some shorts and a tank top, I padded to the bathroom and changed the pad. Exiting our bedroom and was immediately greeted with the smell of coffee and eggs.  I walked up behind Sebastian and pressed my lips to his bare shoulder.

                “Good morning, love.” Sebastian said softly with a smile.

                “Good morning sweetheart.” I softly said slipping my arms around his middle and rested my head on his shoulder.

                “What time do you want to see Dimitri?” Sebastian asked turning around and pecking my lips.

                “I want him home now.” I said with a sigh. “I want to be in our new place with our kids, all of them, and me not to have cancer.” I added laying my head on his chest.

                “We’ll be in our new place soon enough, Dimitri will be home soon enough, and you’ll be cancer free soon.” Sebastian said wrapping his arms around me.

                “I know, I just want this all over.” I said holding onto him.

               “Just think, in 8 weeks this will all be over. No more surgery; no more radiation treatments; no more being sick; just you, me, our babies, and our new place.” Sebastian said, with a soft smile as he looked down at me.  “Get a dog once we're settled in.” He added.

              “A dog, really Seb?” I questioned wide eyed.

              “Well, yeah. Jamie and Ari both have been begging for one.” My husband chuckled. “Besides, someone's got to keep you safe when I’m not home.” He added.

               “Jamie wants to name him Groot.” I laughed.

               “Well, once we're all settled in, we can get ourselves a Groot.” He laughed. “C'mon, let's eat.” He added.

                   Sebastian and I ate breakfast in a comfortable silence before I moved to clean up. While I was finishing up the dishes, Sebastian hopped in the shower. Once he was out, I set to work on getting my own self ready to go to the hospital. When I climbed out of the shower, he was tidying up our bedroom. We exchanged a smile and a kiss and once I slipped a wrap on my head, we made our way our of the apartment.

                      It was a short drive to the hospital and we almost ran from the parking deck to the elevators. Both of us were excited to see how Dimitri was growing. While we were in the elevator, my mind drifted back to the day we said our I do’s.

_September 21, 2013_

_Fall in New York was beautiful. But, today it seemed even more beautiful. Today I was marrying my best friend, the man of my dreams. It wasn’t going to be a big ceremony, both of us opting for a smaller, more intimate one. Our family and closest friends were going to be in attendance and it was being held at The Edison Ballroom. When Sebastian and I were looking at venues, we fell in love with the place right away. There was enough room to have both the ceremony and reception in one venue. We were both incorporating Southern and Romanian cuisine into the menu._

_As the sunlight of our wedding day came pouring into our apartment, I slowly stretched. It felt so foreign to be in bed and not have Sebastian there. Of course, I was used to him being gone to film, but waking up in the same city and not being with him felt foreign to me. I laid in bed collecting my thoughts before I was bombard by both of our mothers and my bridesmaids. I slowly sat up and smiled at Georgeta, knowing that in a few short hours I would be her daughter in law. Not that she didn’t already treat me as family. My eyes landed on the hazel eyes of my mother and I laughed._

_“Mom, you’re leaking already, and I haven’t even gotten outta bed.” I teased._

_“Oh hush. My baby's getting married today. I can cry if I want to.” She laughed._

_“Just save some leakage for the wedding.” I teased climbing out of bed._

_“Oh, trust me, I will.” She laughed._

_I slowly made my way to the balcony overlooking the city. It was eight in the morning and the ceremony was set for one pm. Since I knew my nerves would get the best of me, I had decided on eggs and toast for breakfast and before we made the journey to the Ballroom, I’d have a shot of whiskey. After my breakfast, I moved to take a quick shower and brush my teeth. By the time I was out of the shower and dressed in some sexy lingerie that I was excited for Sebastian to see later. I had just slipped into a fuzzy white robe when there was a knock at the door._

_“The makeup and hair lady are here and so is your dress.” Jennifer, my matron of honor, said poking her head into the room._

_“Thanks.” I grinned slowly making my way into the room._

_It was about eleven thirty when my hair and make up were finished and my bridesmaids were slipping into their gowns as were our mothers. At eleven forty-five, it was time to put me in my gown.  I had opted for an A-line, off the shoulder, pure white gown with minimal lace and my veil was pure white and lacy and it was longer than the train of my gown. At exactly noon, we were making our way down to the waiting limos. I was shocked to see people standing outside our building waiting to snap photos of me in my gown. I was terrified that somehow Sebastian would see a photo, since I had seen that he’d already been on Instagram that morning._

_Me: Chris, take Seb’s phone. People are outside our building taking pictures. I don’t want him to see me in my gown yet._

_Chris: He’s already turned off his phone and given it to me. He’ll get it back after the ceremony. He does have something for you though when you get here._

_Me: Thanks Chris. I have something for him too._

_I sat in silence, staring out the window at the city passing by. In an hour and a half, I would be Mrs. Sebastian Stan and I was both excited and terrified. My father was already at the Ballroom with the men and he would meet me in the hallway when it was time for me to make my entrance. Looking down a soft smile graced my face. Like many other brides, I had my ‘something old’, ‘something borrowed’, and ‘something blue’. The only thing I was missing was my ‘something new’, which I had been told that it was coming from Georgeta and I would receive it once we arrived._

_My ‘something old’ was a pair of earrings that belonged to my departed grandmother. They were a gift given by my grandfather on their wedding day and they had been married sixty years when she passed. Next was my ‘something borrowed’ and it came from my best friend and matron of honor, a hair clip that she wore in her wedding. My ‘something blue’ was quite simple, it was blue burlap woven into my bouquet. I was jarred out of my thoughts when the limo came to a stop. I looked up and realized we had arrived._

_I looked up as the door opened and a hand was extended to me. I wasn’t surprised to see Chris waiting for us to arrive. I took his hand and climbed out of the limo. He pulled me into a hug and smiled._

_“You look stunning.” Chris said with a soft smile. “You’re going to take Seb’s breath away.” He added._

_“Thank you, Chris.” I smiled._

_I gathered up my veil and we made our way inside.  Before Chris and I parted, he handed me a handwritten note from Sebastian and I handed him mine. Once we arrived in our holding room, Georgeta turned to me. She stepped up and opened a box that contained a beautiful pearl necklace._

_“Here is your something new.” She smiled, pulling it out of the box. “It belonged to Sebastian’s grandmother and was passed down to me on my wedding day and now I’m passing it to you. It’s the most precious thing, besides my son, that I brought from Romania.” She added putting it around my neck._

_“And now, you have both.” She finished as I turned around, I saw the tears in her eyes._

_“Oh, Georgeta.” I said pulling her into my arms. “I will always treasure them both.” I added._

_Before another word could be spoken, the wedding planner came for us. Our mothers were escorted to their seats, but not before each of them gave me one last hug and kiss. We slowly made our way to where we’d walk down the aisle. As my bridesmaids made their way down, I caught sight of Sebastian. He had opted for standing with his back to me and he would turn around when the wedding march began, and I made my way down the aisle._

_When everyone had made their way down, it was my turn. I looked at my father and softly smiled. As the wedding march began, I saw Sebastian slowly turn around. Softly smiling, I saw him wipe away a tear when he saw me for the first time. As I made my way down the aisle, I found myself getting misty at the sight of my soon to be husband. As we reached the altar, my father placed my hand into Sebastian’s before kissing my forehead._

_“You look so beautiful.” Sebastian muttered. A tear fell from my eye and Sebastian reached up and brushed it away._

_“Dearly beloved, we’re gathered here today to bear witness to Sebastian Stan and Leighanne Nicole Walker being joined in holy matrimony.” The reverend began._

_As the reverend continued I found myself lost in Sebastian’s blue eyes. I knew I was the luckiest woman on the planet to be marrying this amazing, beautiful man. I reveled in his soft touch as he rubbed soothing circles on my hand. We listened until it was time to say our vows, which we’d written ourselves._

_“I remember the first time I saw you. You were a student at Carolina and we were at a basketball game. You were dressed head to toe in Carolina colors, including a blue afro wig.” Sebastian began, earning a chuckle from the people gathered. “I knew then, I had to meet you. Even though, I didn’t live anywhere near Chapel Hill, I went to another game. When I met you, I knew I was going to spend the rest of my life with you. While I didn’t really want to wait until you were finished with your internship to propose, I knew you worked hard for your degree and I was willing to wait as long as it took. If in the end, I made you mine. I swear to you that I will be faithful to and love you until my dying day. I will be there through everything, the good and the bad. I will always dry your tears and swear that you will only cry happy tears. I’ve loved you since the day I met you and I’ll love you my whole life.” He finished wiping a tear away._

_“When we met, you turned my life upside down. But in the best way possible. Never in my wildest dreams would I have ever guessed that I’d be the one you chose to be by your side. I will stand by you every step of the way and I will unconditionally love you. On your good days, your goofy days, and your bad days, you have my unfailing love and support. You have my whole heart for my whole life. I love you, Sebastian, and I always will.” I said with a soft smile, looking up into Sebastian’s eyes._

_Rings were exchanged and a few more words were spoken before the words came that we most wanted to hear._

_“By the power invested in me by our Lord, God Almighty and the great state of New York, I now pronounce you husband and wife.” He said before turning to Sebastian. “You may kiss your bride.”_

_“Mrs. Stan.” Sebastian mumbled with a wide smile before pressing his lips to mine._

_Smiles on both of our faces as I slip my arms around his neck as we grinned against each other’s lips. We separated and as we started to turn for the recessional, Sebastian lifted me up and tossed me over his shoulder. As he made his way down the aisle with me over his shoulder, he threw his fist up in the air._

_“Woohoo!” He exclaimed gleefully as he carried me down the aisle, me opting for resting my arm on his shoulder with my face buried in my hand all the while, a big grin on my face._

_When we reached the back of the aisle, Sebastian sat me down on the floor. We both laughed, and my face was bright red._

_“I love you, Leighanne Stan.” Sebastian said pressing his lips to mine._

_“I love you too, Sebastian Stan.” I said against his lips._

_We signed the marriage certificate and it was official; I was now known as Leighanne Nicole Stan. He lifted me up into his arms and spun around before pressing his lips to mine in a long lingering kiss._


	9. Chapter 9

           As the sun rose on the day of my surgery, I rolled over and watched Sebastian sleep. Ari and Jamie had spent the night with their grandmother and was going to meet us at the hospital later that morning.  Dimitri was a little over of a week old and still had a long way to go before we could bring him home. Watching Sebastian sleep, noting how at peace he looked, was a stark contrast to him when he was awake. When he was awake, he had the stresses of being an actor, a father of three, and taking care of a wife that had cancer.

“You’re staring.” His sleepy voice said snapping me out of my thoughts.

Blush spread across my face at being caught staring. I couldn’t help it though; I was married to a beautiful man, both inside and out. Sebastian softly smiled and reached over and softly pressed his lips to mine. I reached and ran my fingers along his cheek, feeling the stubble underneath my fingertips. His hair was starting to grow back, thankfully. Sebastian and I slowly climbed out of bed and started to get ourselves together for the day ahead. As long as everything went well, I would be able to go home that evening. I was looking forward to the surgery, believe it or not. It would make me one step closer to being cancer free.   

            I was standing outside on the balcony when I felt a pair of arms slip around my waist. He nuzzled his face into my neck. Leaning back in his embrace, I softly smiled as he pecked my neck. 

            “Are you ready?” He asked softly, holding onto me tighter. 

             “As I'll ever be.” I said with a sigh. 

              While I was looking forward to the surgery, it still was just that, surgery. I still was being put under anesthesia. Sebastian, Georgeta, and the kids would be right there with me until they took me to the OR and he would be there when I woke up. He took my hand and we were out the door. 

             I knew that Sebastian would be keeping everyone up to date on everything. We arrived at the hospital and got checked in. I was in the room and changed when Georgeta came in with the kids. We spent time as a family before they came for me. I was wheeled back to the OR after a kiss from Sebastian and the kids. 

 

_ Sebastian’s POV _

            As I watched my wife being wheeled out of the pre-op holding room I was feeling a mix joy and fear. On one hand, I was feeling joy because I knew this would remove the tumor that was growing inside my wife’s breast and bring her one step closer to being cancer; on the other hand, I was feeling fear, this was a surgery after all. Things could go wrong. But I wasn’t going to concentrate on the fear, I was only going to think about the life we were going to have once she was cancer free. We had three children, a new house we were going to be moving into soon and there were other bedrooms to be filled and many other memories to be made.

 

_            Four years ago  _

 

_            I had just married the love of my life. She was finally mine. As I watched her sign our marriage certificate my heart burst with joy. Once my name was signed, it was officially official. She was my wife and I was her husband. Forever hers. There wasn't anything I wouldn't do for her.  _

_            While our guests were enjoying a cocktail hour, we were taking wedding portraits. I couldn’t take my eyes off her. In the short time we’d been engaged, we’d already started talking about starting a family of our own. I wanted nothing more than to see her belly swollen with my child. In the different poses, there was only one that I wanted. Our final pose, I cupped her cheek in my hands and softly pressed my lips to hers. We shared a soft sweet kiss as our final pose.  _

_            After a while, we made our way to our guests. The party kicked into high gear and as we shared our first dance, she looked up at me with a smile on her face. _

_          “What?” I asked with a light chuckle. _

_          “What do you think about starting a family?” She asked softly. _

_          “You know how I feel about that.” I said looking at her. _

_           “No, I mean like now.” She said with a soft smile. “On our honeymoon.” _

_          “You want to start a family now?” I asked with wide eyes. _

_          “I do, as long as it’s with you.” She said with a smile. “I don’t wait to wait to start a family with you.” She added. _

 

         “Mr Stan.” A nurse said gently shaking me awake. “Mr Stan.”

         “Yeah.” I jumped quickly sitting up.

         “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.” The young brunette said with a soft smile.  _ She looks a lot like Nikki _ . I thought with a soft smile. “You’re wife’s in recovery and asking for you.”

         “She’s awake.” I said standing up. 

         “She is.” She said with a soft smile. “The doctor said they got all of the tumor.” She added.

         “Good.” I said with a smile.

        The nurse led me to the recovery room where Nikki laid in the bed staring up at the ceiling. I walked over to her and softly took my hand in hers. She turned her head towards me and softly smiled.

       “Hello, gorgeous.” I said leaning up and softly kissing her.

       “Hello handsome.” She said with a smile.

       “How are you feeling?” I asked.

       “Ok for now.” She said softly. “The pain is ok for now and they got it all.” She added.

       “Good.” I said pressing a kiss to her lips again.

       “One step closer to this being over.” She said with a smile. “The kids are staying with your mom right.” She added.

       “Yes.” I nodded.

       “Good.” She said with a smile. “I think I get to go home soon.” She added.

       “I can find out.” I said rising just glad that she was going to be ok now.

       A few minutes later I came back and told my wife that it wasn’t a matter of time before we were discharged from the hospital. It was going to be a long night as we were told that she was going to be in a whole lot of pain once the meds wore off.

      “I’m going to get you home and settled and then get your meds.”  I said looking at her.

       “Ok.” She nodded shifting with a wince.

       “We’ll be home soon, babe.” I said taking my hand in hers.

        Two hours later, she was sound asleep in no pain.


End file.
